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Rudofker started cooking in his hometown of Philadelphia before taking a step to New York in 2005 and a gig working under Cornelius Gallagher at his Oceana restaurant.

From Oceana, he spent two years at the Cru restaurant with chef Shea Gallante before joining Daniel Boulud’s razor sharp crew at his Daniel restaurant. With a stint at Heston Blumenthal’sFat Duck and a steady rise through the ranks at Momofuku, Rudofker is one of the most well rounded young chefs working in America today.

In the video above, he discusses his approach to sourcing ingredients, his expensive guilty pleasure and what he thinks of fine dining in 2017. He also reveals what he’ll do if he’s crowned the Rising Star Chef at the James Beard Award ceremony in Chicago on May 1st.

The Rising Star Chef Award, sponsored by S.Pellegrino, focuses on young talent across the U.S restaurant industry. It’s aimed at chefs 30 years or younger who are ‘likely to make a significant impact on the industry in years to come.’ Previous winners have included Daniela Soto-Innes, Christina Tosi and David Chang.